SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – There is a new, quick, and more efficient way to apply for, pay for, and monitor short term vacation rentals (STVRs), all in a one-stop-shop at residents fingertips.
It is in the form of a website called Rentalscape, and it first got the greenlight from the city in July 2023. It was created by city at the behest of city staff and residents who said they wanted a more streamlined way to submit applications and make sure permit enforcement is strong.
“What we recognized through the years is that we needed to do more than just accept paper applications. We needed to move toward a more technologically savvy platform as well as moving forward in having an enforcement mechanism that could be up to speed with changes occurring in technology,” says Bridget Lidy, Director of Planning and Urban Design with the City of Savannah.
The online platform eliminates the paper STVR application process. In addition, you can do everything through Rentalscape from apply for permits and renewals, pay for STVRs, and submit enforcement complaints.
You can upload pictures, videos, and audio tracks if you see something awry with an STVR in your neighborhood, as well as call a 24 hour hotline: (912) 226-0320.
Cynthia Knight with Savannah Code Compliance says the primary concerns she hears are noise and permit related.
“Prior to the software, we relied solely on complaints, so we were reactive,” says Knight, “We can be proactive now because the software actually identifies the unpermitted locations, and we’re able to go out and investigate.”
Bob Rosenwald lives in the Historic District, and tells News 3 he has wanted a better way to monitor unpermitted STVRs for a while.
He says he has used Rentalscape, but is still skeptical in its efficacy.
“If it works perfectly, it’s not a panacea, because Savannah has to enforce the ordinances they have on the books, and they have a really poor track record of doing that,” says Rosenwald, “For example, on the owner-occupied short term vacation rental, I think they’re misinterpreting their own ordinance.”
Rosenwald says the platform lacks specific information he says he believes would be more helpful in monitoring STVRs.
“For example, when I click on a license, I would like to see when it was licensed, how many bedrooms, how many parking spaces, how many violations; there’s none of that on there,” he says.
Overall, Rosenwald says he believes the city is off to a good start.
“I think there’s a lot of room for improvement, but I’m glad the city is at least willing to do something different,” he says.
Rentalscape had a soft launch May 15, and a spokesperson with the City of Savannah tells News 3 there are still engineering issues being worked on that should be ready soon. Rentalscape’s map which shows the location of all the STVRs is not completely accurate at the moment, and should take a couple more weeks to be fixed and ready for public use.
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